May 9, 2020 archive

Well, as everyone else, Patrik and I won’t get any younger (OK, Patrik stays “25 Plus” forever…. *haha*). Those of you, who know us, also know about our future plan/dream: To spend our (remaining) lives aboard our own ship – preferably a well equipped catamaran!

So far, we planned and worked for that aim. We completed the necessary education, read tons of books and even rented specifically a Leopard twice, in order to get a feeling for a multihull.

We experienced fantastic summer weather in the Med, but also quite uncomfortable winds, storms & rain (a lot), and even leakage into our cabin.

Nevertheless, in the end Patrik and I were convinced, that’s the life we want and we definitely found the perfect type of boat for us – and Odin The Admiral – of course! With…erm…. just one tiny little flaw….no suitable (mostly moneywise) cat was within reach!

In the end, we bought LUNA AZZURRA in 2018, a 2005 Bavaria 42 Cruiser, in 2018! Admittedly, we were incredibly lucky and she was a bargain! Mint condition and she turned out to be absolutely reliable.

The big “BUT” though remained, that she isn’t a cat and we actually thought of her more as a business model and holiday yacht for us. But permanently living on her wasn’t really an option for us.

However, time went, we read more books and blogs about others who have fulfilled their dreams and live aboard a ship – on cat’s but also on smaller ones than LUNA AZZURRA. We also informed ourselves what such a life actually costs. And we mean the TOTAL-TOTAL costs for two people, from paying the monthly pension fund, over to overwinter in a marina, travelling home from time to time, down to buying toilet paper. We came to an amount of CHF 3’000.- per month – and that’s for both of us (including Odin)!

Well, it slowly occurred to us that, by continuing dreaming about a catamaran we probably would never be able to live our dreamlife and sail away from the rat race we want to escape. We would continue to chase our dream and in ten years we would still be here. With the difference that until then we most likely wouldn’t want to do it anymore, we probably would have lost the enthusiasm, the drive so to say, plus I can imagine we would be worn out talking and planning our life on board, without it ever happening. Plus with over sixty starting a brand-new life? I’m not sure if Patrik and I are the kind of people who would do that…Or maybe we are…?!

Anyway, lately we’ve started to consider if maybe a life on board LUNA AZZURRA could be possible. After all, we do own a well-sized boat in super condition!

I mean, if we could sell our house with the desired profit, we could live an easy life for ten years. Exploring the Med, visit all the beautiful islands, gather impressions and experience – and just enjoy our so long dreamed dream! And in ten years, we would be near to retirement, and we would draw our pension.

It does sound very tempting, doesn’t it?

Another thought to get it finally done is that now we both are motivated and healthy! We wish we would be ten years younger, though… But who knows what happens in the future…in five years, in two months? One could get seriously sick or has an accident.

Wouldn’t it be bitter having to admit, that instead of daring our adventure, we wasted all the time in finding excuses and 100% security?

Soooooo, as a first step, Patrik and I have started to write a list, what has to be done on our monohull yacht to life a comfortably life on board. Some major things need to be changed, for example we need solar panels and a watermaker, then an inverter, a generator/batteries…… then simpler stuff, like a washing machine, a new mattrass in the master cabin, probably a new stove…. Well, the list is quite long and growing 😉.

Right now, we give ourselves two years to complete the tasks. Until then we’ll be 55, which seems just in time to start our new lives! We’ll see what happens next, right?!